A Stray
by lelak541
Summary: Goten loved to play with and feed animals. However, he has mixed feelings about strays. Is it loyal or does it let anybody feed it and play with it? Will it leave or stay? When will it disapear forever? The same can be asked about his father.


_Ok, I know that Goku isn't as bad as a father as people say but this my headcanon of how Goten sees his father, not how Goku really is. So please read the story before you flame. Warning, Goten is probably a bit out of character. Enjoy._

DISCLAIMER: I _do not own Dragonball or any of the characters._

Goten loves animals. Besides his brother and mother, they were the only living beings he played with on a daily basis. Sure there was Trunks but they live really far apart and they couldn't see each other every day. Gohan needed to study a lot, his mom had chores to do and his grandpa had a kingdom to run. That often left Goten alone. He spent those 'alone' times in the woods and mountains around his house. He searched for all types of animals, helped those in need, and fed strays.

Strays were something Goten had mixed feelings about. They were unpredictable. Sometimes they will go to you for food, sometimes to somebody else. No stray animal was the same, stray dogs would often be protective of the people that feed it, while stray cats would only come for food. However, Goten did see dogs only coming for food, and cats be protective. Some strays let you touch them, some would run away and some would even try to bite you. But in the end there are only two possible outcomes. One is that you domesticate it and it becomes your pet. The other, more sad outcome, is that they disapear and you never see them again. They might have went to a different city or village, they might have started their own family, somebody else might have adopted them or they might have died. In all of this cases the outcome is the same, it doesn't matter how much you bounded or played with them, it's highly unlikley that you will ever see them again. The first time that happened to Goten he felt sad and, in a way, betrayed. He cried and didn't understand why the dog won't come back. It took a month of Goten coming to the same place and waiting for the dog until dark for his mother and Gohan to explain to him that's how strays are. They come and go, sometimes they are gone forever. Since that day, Goten was on guard around strays. He still fed and played with them but he tried not to get attached to the animals too much. And later to his father.

Goten never tought he needed a father. He had Gohan and his grandpa, sometimes even, on really rare occasions, Vegeta. That was enough for him. However he wanted to meet Goku, the hero that his brother looked up to, the man that saved the world, the person that was even stronger than Vegeta, the main character of all the stories people told him. His wish came true at the age of seven. He met Goku, and it was a pretty great meeting. Everybody was happy, actually, in his seven years of life he had never seen his brother and mother as happy as the moment they saw Goku. But that happiness only lasted for half a day before Buu came. Long story short, people died, they trained, lost, died, Goku came and beat the villian, they got resurrected, everybody gets back to their daily life. Almost everybody.

Goku came back to life as well, meaning things changed drastically in the Son household. At first, Goten didn't know how to deal with the newcomer but he tried his best to welcome Goku back into the family and decided to spend a lot o time with his father. Until he realized that Gohan acts different. Normally Gohan would spend a lot of his time in their room studying. But now, even tough he got a girlfriend and needed to learn so he can get into a good university, he spends a lot of his time with Goku. That was when Goten understood how much Gohan missed his father. So, Goten decided to leave Goku all to Gohan. Sometimes doing stuff with them but trying not to get the spotlight or take away Gohan's time with Goku. That was going on for three years until Gohan moved to Satan City for university. In those three years Goten learned alot about his father just by watching him and Gohan. His father was a stray.

Even in those three years, Goku would often go to train somewhere. It would last from one day to one month. Sometimes he would only come home for food and leave again. Sometimes he would 'play' with Gohan and Goten. Sometimes he would listen to Chichi. It reminded Goten of the stray dog that never come back. The stray dog he loved with his whole heart, the one that even protected Goten and licked Goten's wounds after falling. The more Goten tought about that, the more he tought of his father as a stray. The multiple people that feed him, were his friends and people that he trained with. He was thankful, so he started to really care about them and protect them. Goku was definitely a stray. That's the reason why even after Gohan moved out Goten still didn't get attached to Goku. Afterall, there are only two outcomes, and Goku still wasn't domesticated and Goten didn't want to get hurt again when Goku leaves for good.

Goten knows that strays have often a hard time when they get adopted into a family. They get lots of love and attention but lose their freedom. They also tend to break things and pee on the floor, since nobody ever trained them. That fit Goku's new situation, except the peeing part. Goku would often brake doors, and one time he exploded the house. He never worked before, so he is not used to do it now. So Goten made a decision to help Goku as much as he can. He helped with the garden, explained how other people act and he explained what's considered rude and what nice, all without getting too attached to Goku. That wasn't easy for Goten, now that Goku is home and Gohan away, his mother cut his training and free time and increased his study time.

Chichi wanted to make sure that her second son gets as great as a future as her first son. Goten understood that, but he also understood that there is no way in a million years that he can become as good as Gohan. It didn't matter how much he studied he never got past 85 precent. It was just like Trunks said _'Some are born with it, some people can achive it, and some just can't. It's genetics and you, my friend, didn't have any luck. Don't worry, tough. I'm pretty sure you are good at other things.' _

The problem was that his mother nor his brother underdstood that. Meaning, he spent the next two years juggling between studying, helping (training) Goku, and a little bit of free time. It was hard and Goten doesn't know how he did it but he believes it's thanks to Trunks and the Briefs family, including Vegeta. When he was around them, Goten could be as rude and as loud as he wanted to. No holding back. And when he had a bad day he and Trunks would just spar it out to get all of Goten's frustration out. But them came the 'savior', Pan.

Pan was born when Goten was around twelve. Nothing really changed at first. Goku was still coming and going, still acting as the stray that Goten didn't want get attached to. But one unlucky, or lucky moment where Goku destroyed their house changed everything. They moved to Gohan's house for a few days. The first day just so happen to be the day where Gohan and Videl needed to go to an interview for Gohan's promotion and they wouldn't be home, resulting in Piccolo, Goku and Chichi babysitting while Goten just watched. Goten realized how much Pan meant to Goku and he knew Pan was the key to _'domesticate'_ his father, but that wasn't the only thing Pan did.

In fact, Chichi got attached to Pan as well. So much so that she started to care less and less for Goten's grades. Goku stayed more and more at home or at Gohan's house. Both of his biggest problems were fixed. He kind of felt jealous of Pan. Goten was born into a poor family with only his mother, brother and grandpa. But Pan at the age of only two had more things Goten had for the first seven years of his life combined. She had both of her parents, three caring grandparents, and two uncles, since even Piccolo was a victim to her charm. No matter how much he tried in the past he could never get Piccolo to play, so he figured that's just what Piccolo was like. But now he is seeing him wilingly playing with Pan. The biggest thing he was jealous about were Gohan and Goku. Both of them acted like great fathers to Pan. When he saw that, he realized that it wasn't enough. It didn't matter how much his brother and grandpa loved him, nor how Vegeta would make sure he and Trunks don't die or scold them. Nothing can replace the real thing.

Goten felt stupid for comparing his father and strays. He was the one that was too scared to attach himself to his father, his dad, and created a rift. But he couldn't help it, his brother would often have nightmares just to wake up and ask for his dad. But there was nobody. Same with his mother on the day of Goku' death. He grew up seeing his brother and mother, and every single one of their friends missing Goku. After what happened and how he felt about that dog, he was too scared of what would happen when his father left. And now he lost not only his brother to Pan but everybody else as well.

In the next three years Goten changed. He was still studying enough to have decently good grades. His mother was okay with that, her main focus now was Pan. She still loved Goten but decided against forcing him to be something he doesn't want to. Goten didn't know what to do with his new found freedom, so he started to hang out with his classmates. One thing let to another and he started to go on dates for fun, even getting himself a few girlfriends. He started to stay more and more in West City, even going to highschool there instead of Satan City. It is a good school but he didn't want everybody associating him with his brother, or worse, Hercule. Another reason for not going to Satan City was because of Gohan. He loved his brother but when Goten started to hang out with his friends, he started to fight with Gohan. Apparently, if you move out when your little brother is ten, you will always think of him as ten. Meaning, he tends to overreact when Goten stays out with his friends until the late hours of 10 p.m. and Goten doesn't need his overprotective saiyan brother to come flying to him and his friends in his Sayaman costume explaining that children should be in bed by 9 p.m. That happened multiple times. Trunks even recorded it and showed it to everybody. Even Goku

laughed at it.

Goten, even tough not completly, got attached to his dad. In the end, the jealousy that he felt towards Pan fuiled him to hang out with his dad more. Now he had a rival for Goku's time and affection and he was losing against Pan. One reason is that he could never get rid off the feeling that Goku's is gonna left them, again. Another that Goten just isn't into fighting anymore, but Pan loves it.

Those three years were pretty good, until his dad wanted to go the Worlds Martial Arts Tournament. Goten was forced to go there but atleast Trunks was in the same boat as him. He wasn't going to suffer alone.

He didn't. But it wasn't Trunks who suffered but Pan of all people. Goku decided to leave, again. This time to train a child.

A child nobody even knows. Pan looked heartbroken. She looked like Goten when the dog didn't come back. And that's when Goten knew it was time for somebody to give Pan the new, updated talk about strays.

Afterall that's what Goku was, a stray. An idotical, fighting obsessed, loyal, lovable stray. Maybe he will come back, maybe he won't, nobody ever knows. That's why you should cherish the time you have with him. But even so, Goten is still a good uncle and if Goku comes back Goten is going to punch him in the face for hurting his niece's feelings.


End file.
